TwitterFacebookInstagram

Opinion & Comment

Myanmar. Elections 2020. Hope for change?

Later this year, Myanmar is scheduled to hold its third general election in six decades in a landmark development for the country’s democratic transition. While details remain unclear amid the global coronavirus pandemic, as of now the Southeast Asian state is set to hold its expected polls as the ruling party faces manifold challenges that…

Read more

Erdogan plays the whole field. Trouble for the EU.

The Turkish President sides with NATO but flirts with Moscow and uses Syrian refugees and the spectre of Jihadism to blackmail Brussels. Libya, too, is going it alone. Diplomatic relations between the European Union and Turkey are still sailing in troubles waters. One of the main points of disagreement concerns the refugees sojourning on Turkish…

Read more

Europe/Africa. Migration and Security.

Migration from Africa to Europe is increasingly being framed as a security threat to states and societies. The result is tighter border controls and visa policies. These efforts have led to fewer African migrants reaching Europe, but have also had several unintended negative consequences. European Union (EU) policies to deter Europe-bound African migration include the…

Read more

Challenges Facing Africa.

An examination of issues related to the extractive industries, trade agreements, land grabs, capital flight, corporate tax evasions, human trafficking, mass migrations, the endemic conflicts and other things that deprive Africans of their dignity can be anchored on problem of governance. Africa: Impoverished By Wealth. Africa is perhaps the richest piece of land on earth,…

Read more

Energy Transition in Europe, Minerals Conquer in Africa.

In December 2019, the European Union agreed on the objective of achieving a climate-neutral EU by 2050. The fight against climate change along with the aim to limit global warming to well below 2°C in this century are at the heart of the EU’s energy policies. Achieving these goals requires a strong commitment from EU…

Read more

Africa. Illicit Financial Flows in the Mining Sector.

The European Commission recognises that mining and extractive companies in Africa are responsible for 65% of tax fraud, i.e. the money that states in Africa fail to collect due to the Illicit Financial Flows (IFF). The mechanisms that the multinationals use for tax fraud are complex, such as tax avoidance, tax evasion and transfer pricing.…

Read more

South Africa. 2020: The year of Reckoning.

The year 2020 is going to tell us a lot about the long-term future of our country. Are we going to pull ourselves out of the mud of corruption, incompetence and ignorance, and start to glimpse the ‘better life for all’ that we have been promised since 1994, or will we instead continue dithering around,…

Read more

Somalia: Endless War.

The country has been struggling with extreme weather changes, violence and disease for nearly 30 years and is increasingly subject to severe climate shocks that are worsening a prolonged humanitarian crisis. Here are seven things we should know about the crisis in Somalia: 1. It’s a complex crisis The humanitarian crisis in Somalia is one…

Read more

Illicit financial flows. The Big Business.

It is a fact that the tax systems of developing countries are severely constrained by lack of adequate legislation, deep-rooted weak democratic institutions and pervasive corruption. Tax systems’ collection shortfalls are mainly due to low Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, poverty and illicit financial flows (IFF). Therefore, in order to increase the tax revenues…

Read more

The priorities of Russian foreign policy in Africa.

Holding summits for African heads of governments is fast becoming a recurrent event among the global power brokers. The EU has had about 5 of these summits, probably to massage and codify her colonial exploitative economic spree with Africa because nothing significant has really emerged from those submits to enhance Africa’s fortune. Following the example…

Read more

Africa. Pioneering the Fight against Plastic Waste.

While Europe is only tentatively taking action against the flood of plastic articles, countries in Africa have taken drastic measures against disposable plastic bags, the most widespread form of plastic waste. Plastic waste pollution has since been recognized as one of the global most dangerous pollutants. It pollutes the oceans, threatens the marine environment and…

Read more

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. Nobel Peace Prize 2019.

In February 2018, in the midst of ongoing political turmoil, few could have predicted the radical political change of direction Ethiopia would experience within a matter of weeks. The election in March 2018 of Abiy Ahmed as Chairman of the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and consequently the country’s Prime Minister heralded the…

Read more

Advocacy

Semia Gharbi. Fighting against eco-mafias.

She played a key role in a campaign that challenged a corrupt waste trafficking scheme between Italy and Tunisia, resulting in the return of 6,000…

Read more

Baobab

The swallow brings the summer.

The Black and white swallow flew high up in the clear, blue sky, wheeling and diving, his fast, pointed wings carrying him at a great speed. Swallow…

Read more

Youth & Mission

Pope Leo and the Youth.

Welcoming, listening and guiding. Some characteristics of Pope Leo with the youth During the years when Father Robert Francis Prevost was pastor of the church of Our…

Read more